The number of babies being born is falling globally, with profound effects in store for societies and economies should the trend continue long term. The phenomenon has preoccupied pro-natalist politicians like JD Vance and Viktor Orban; as well as father-of-12 Elon Musk who has previously claimed "a collapsing birth rate is the biggest danger civilization faces by far". But while it’s long been acknowledged the decline is down to couples deciding to have smaller families, Financial Times data reporter John Burn-Murdoch believes the trend in recent decades is actually down to a ‘relationship recession’; a collapse in the number of couples of child-bearing age. This is happening in countries as disparate as Finland and South Korea. Burn-Murdoch reveals the reason for the global decline is surprising and is not, as frequently posited, driven by the financially independent "girl-boss". Irish Times sex and relationships columnist, Roe McDermott, also joins the podcast to examine the factors contributing to the relationship recession in Ireland.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Aideen Finnegan.

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